Tag: incredible culture

Grabbing a sushi triangle passing through a train station is the definition of breakfast on the go. We ventured our way to Asakusa and spent most of the morning browsing through the market stalls and collecting souvenirs. Though, our first order of business was to find a particular knife shop that Jordan had researched. When we got there, we discovered entire streets dedicated to cookery, homewares and knives. Shop after shop, there was no shortage. After reminding ourselves over and over about our luggage allowance limit on the flight back home, we eventually got to ‘Kamata’, a sleek store filled with all types and brands of knives. Jordan ended up taking home a set of two Japanese knives, engraved with his last name – Cooper.

For lunch, we snacked on deep fried, pancake like patties filled with meat, vegetables and curry. They were surprisingly delicious. We strolled on through the markets, looking at all the trinkets, artwork and traditional clothing, then made our way to Tokyo Skytree. We didn’t end up going to the top as the line was quite long and we needed to be heading back to the hotel to collect our luggage and make our way to the airport. It was a lovely day and we were able to get a couple souvenirs for our families.

Mt Takao

Harajuku Gardens

Surprised to see flowers blooming in Winter in The Imperial Palace Gardens

Really clean and brightly coloured fire truck

Although we allowed plenty of time to get to the airport, have a snack and say our goodbyes, and board, we only just made it on. Two Jetstar flights were leaving within thirty minutes of each other, Cairns and Gold Coast, and the queues to check into either flight were extremely slow moving and long. Even though the flights were quite cheap, I can’t say I would definitely fly Jetstar internationally again as both flights were disappointing – long queues, staff uninterested in doing their duties, cleanliness and upkeep of toilets.

We were able to squeeze in a couple hugs with Pop before he raced onto the plane and took off. Fortunately, we still had ten minutes before we were due to board, so we raced down to the duty free shop and stocked up on some essentials. Soon, we were in the air and all the food we had packed for our journey was gobbled up by Mr. Cooper in the first twenty minutes.

Back in Oz, we arrived early morning as the sun rose and started our day off with a giant breakfast – I’m pretty sure Jordan got two big breakfasts’. It was nice to be back in the warm weather. We kept busy, going to the gym and walking around the shops. We even started the clothes washing, eugh!

Finishing our holiday up with a couple days at the Gold Coast was relaxing and refreshing. Our last night was celebrated at Moo Moo’s, a great steakhouse in Broadbeach – a little tradition we had started. We had delicious wine and shared a 1kg Wagu Beef Rump, their signature dish.

I can’t wait to come back and explore other parts of Japan and maybe even take part in some snow sports. Until then, stay tuned for more adventures.